We Can't Run Away From This: Racing to improve running’s footprint in our climate emergency

‘The benefits of running are well known; however, the environmental impact of the sport is something most people don’t think about. From buying a new pair of trainers, travelling for a race or upgrading your running watch, you may be living a healthy life, but you may also be damaging future lives.’

Anyone who’s done a mass-participation road race will remember a sea of discarded plastic cups, plastic bottles and plastic gel wrappers in our wake, plus all those free (plastic) T-shirts in a drawer unused. The global trainer industry creates as much carbon dioxide and equivalent greenhouse gas emissions (CO2e) as the entire United Kingdom (and,